Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1887-04-09
THE JERSEY LILY.
THE REASON WHY MRS. LANGTRY
WENT ON THE STAGE.
Why She Separated from Her Hus-
banda Laudable Desire TO Get
Rich-Future Prospects.

Charles Mendum, who for two years was
the private and intimate business manager
of Mrs. Langtry, does not believe that the
Lily will marry Mr.. Gebhsrdt for some
time to come.
Her idea is to become independently
well off and possess fortune that she has
made by her own exertions. Rich as Mr..
Gerhard is, she would not be satisfied to
divide his money. What she wants is her
own. She has but two great breads in life
-one is getting old, and the other is to be
poor and old. She has often said to me,
and it was evidently, therefore, an idea that
struck her: want a half million Sc
curely invested so that l cannot lose it.
Then l shall leave the stage and devote my
self to myself. Until then nothing shall
swerve me to this side or that
Mr.. Mendum thinks the Lily now has
from S350,000 to 100000 put aside-all of
it pretty nearly in American mortgages.
At first she sent her money to England for
investment-about $4,000 of it. After that
she got an American lawyer and began her
American investments, which, all of them,
bring her from to per cent; fully
double the interest she would get in Eng
land
81 was in the parlor car" went on Mr..
Mendum, with my wife the whole time
that Fred Gerhard travelled in it. Mrs.
Langtry and he would meet at meals, but
generally in the daytime she would retire
to her own drawiDg-room. Sometimes,
when she was in good humor, we would all
play cards together for small stakes. The
fact is, she soon found the value of Geb-
hard as an advertisement, and humored
him accordingly. Love him, no. There
was never the slightest indication of even
interest in him so far as l could see. You
can always leave those things to woman,
and my wife was of precisely the same
opinion as l was.
He was always very polite and deferen-
tial, and never attempted the slightest
familiarity. He never gave her present
during the whole time he travelled with
us but every night he sent her bouquet.
1t did not matter where we were, he always
managed to have the bouquet on hand.
Sometimes he had to have them sent from
other cities. These bouquets usually
decorated the breakfast table the next
morning"
How about the likelihood of divorce?"
asked the reporter.
There was no likelihood when l was
with her, and she evidently appeared salts
fed with the mutually agreed upon sepa-
ration that had taken place between her
self and her husband. He had promised
never to come near her. On one occasion
it was reported that he was very i'll, and
she showed a great deal of emotion-a
surprising demonstration on the part of so
absolutely cold woman. 1t is this cold
ness that settles in my mind the story that
she has fallen in love with Fred Gerhard.
1t is quite possible, however, that some
understanding has been arrived at about a
divorce. She has not seen her husband
for several years and their separation has
lasted now for more than five. l suppose,
therefore, a divorce might be obtained
without trouble. 1t is quite certain that
the old affair is off forever.
/ remember Mrs. Langtry telling me
the facts of the separation, and they are
rather curious. The Langtrys had been in
London society for several years, and while
money had been going out absolutely
nothing offered itself whereby something
would come in. At last Mrs. Langtry be-
came desperate. Her social successes had
been very great in London, but these very
successes cost great deal of money. AT
length it came TO the time when only few
hundred pounds were left. Mr. Langtry
had been doing nothing, and she had been
urging him to find some business that
would give him a maintenance. She got a
sum from her father, and with that she
already had secured enough to buy an in
terest in the photograph, then a great in
vention and generally believed to be prac-
teal With the money she had purchased
an interest in the instrument for several OF
the counties, aad Mr.. Langtry went down
TO Bradford, think it was, to work 1t. She
waited for one, two and three weeks to hear
from him, but not word came.
Finally she determined on trip down
20 Bradford to see what had become of the
phonograph and Mr.. Langtry. She got
there, and TO her amazement found that
not thing had been done, that the phono-
graph had not even been started on its ca
reer, and that all the money Mr.. Langtry
ND with him was gone with his boon
companions. Bitter recriminations en-
sued, and they parted forever. The follow
ing week Mrs. Langtry accepted an engage
ment from the Kendalls TO play at go q
week. She crowded the Haymarket The
alter. They then wanted her to go on a
tour through the country at the same price
but she saw that if she could draw in Lon
don she could draw still better in the prov
inces, so she went on her own hook. She
played to the biggest money ever known in
the large centerS. She was anxious, how
ever, to get to America, and wanted badly
an American manager. Somebody sug-
gested Henry E. Abbey, and by pure luck
he fell into tremendous success, but one
which he worked up beautifully"
DO you believe Mrs. Langtry will
marry Gerhard"
Il don't know Who can tell the mind
of woman? But if Fred Gerhard get:
her. he will get one of the finest womer
aliye.-N. y. Journal.